Thursday, 2 June 2011

Lost in Germany - relaunching Lost in Deutschland

Dear new "Lost in Deutschland" reader,

It was just over five years ago that I first had the idea for “Lost in Deutschland”. At the time, I was working at the German edition of the Financial Times during my year abroad from a languages degree and started writing in German about my experiences as a new arrival in Europe’s most populous country.

After going back to Oxford to finish my degree, I returned to Germany over three years ago and picked up where I left off writing in German about all the weird and unknown stuff I came across out here: first, I opened up this blog for a German audience under the tried-and-tested “Lost in Deutschland” brand name; three years ago last month, some contacts and I made a pilot film forthe web video series to accompany it.

Since then, I’ve been writing and making films about German peculiarities – about the food and drink (hhmm, pork and beer, uhuhuhh), about the complicated-but-resourceful language, about the world-changing history and culture, and about the way that Germans always ask you to pee standing up and refuse to signpost their toilets adequately (articles in English on these points here). I've been making a loosely-bound Teutonopedia, if you like, with everything from the sacred (roast pork) to the profane (bog-holes).

Even if the pork is as delicious, the beer as intoxicating and the toilets as just plain bizarre as they ever were, I’d be lying if I said that, after three years, I weren’t more familiar with them than I had been. So it’s time to revamp the blog and turn things over to other people who really are – or rather really have been – lost in Germany.

So from here on in, I’ll be featuring and commenting on English-speaking writers of all ages, eras and types who have spent time in Germany, for whatever reason, and written about it. There’ll be some surprise candidates (David Hume’s views on Germany circa 1770, anyone?) as well as – publishing companies willing – some old favourites (as a statement of intent, I’m gunning for Bryson and Winder amongst others).

Also, as you may have noticed by now, I’ll be writing in English from now on.

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What's it about?

Follow writers, some famous and some less so, as they too get Lost in Deutschland. From Melville to Auden, from Mary Shelley to John le Carré: Germany has long inspired English-speaking writers, and in this series, I aim to show just how and where.

As of May 2013, a wide-ranging collection of these texts has been available as a book: order Germany: Beyond the Enchanted Foresthere.

About Me

Mmm, German food...

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